People Who Listen to Horses and Dreams

By Montague Ullman, M.D.

I have just read an amazing book. It's a book that deservedly had been
on the best-seller list for quite a while. I refer to The Man Who Listens to
Horses by Monty Roberts.

Although we share the same given name (except for a small alteration in
the spelling), his life was very different from mine. He grew up in horse
territory in California, living in a house on the rodeo grounds. Horses were
and still are the focus of his life. He won his first trophy at the age of four
in a competition for age 16 and under, and continued to win them throughout his
life.

By the age of 13 he had mastered the "silent body grammar" of
horses living in the wild. From that point on he became a teacher whose mission
in life was to use gentle rather than forceful means to invite a creature used
to the freedom of the herd to voluntarily accommodate to a man-made world.

As a child he turned away in disgust and revulsion from the cruel ways
in which his father went about getting the job done by breaking the animal's
spirit. Over and over again he was forced to witness the terrifying agony of
the animal struggling from the bonds that held it. He chose a different path
against not only the opposition of his father, but of many others who, despite
the evidence of his successes, clung to the old ways. He did, in the end,
achieve recognition - much of it - and throughout the world.

As I said, our lives couldn't have been more different. I grew up in New
York City and had nothing to do with horses after the age of four or five. On
that occasion I was with my father at a fair where there were pony rides for
small children. I don't recall who instigated it, whether it was my father or
me, but I have a vivid recall of what happened. I was no sooner placed on the
saddle than the animal reared a bit and I found myself gently sliding down the
pony's back onto the ground. I wasn't hurt but I screamed as if I were, and
that was the end of my contact with that species.

My point, however, is that, despite all the overt differences in our
lifestyles and interests, one powerful analogy really seized me as I read the
book. We were both interested in learning a language that is not obvious to the
casual observer, is easily overlooked, and even when it is not, is generally
not taken seriously. He was interested in learning the body language of the
mustang, I of the dream.

Roberts got
in touch with his calling a good deal earlier than I did. It wasn't until I was
16 that I got jump-started by a book published in 1899. The book was written by
Thomas Jay Hudson and was entitled The Law of Psychic Phenomena: A Working
Hypothesis for the Systematic Study of Hypnotism, Spiritism, Mental Therapeutics,
Etc. The circumstances of my life at the time added to the impact. Along with
several friends of the same age, I took an interest in psychic phenomena and we
began our own experiments to see what we could accomplish by holding séances in
the dark. I won't go into this as it would take too long, but the fact is that
the results we got far exceeded our expectations.

The book also stimulated my interest in hypnosis. My sister, three years
younger, was an innocent but quite responsive subject. I touched her with a
penny at room temperature while she was in a trance and told her I had heated
it. Within a relatively short time redness appeared where I had touched her.

My interest in the powers of the unconscious dimension of our lives
eventually led to my becoming a neurologist and then a psychoanalyst. Where
Roberts' passion was horses, mine became dreams. What they both had in common
was a hidden language. And a lot more.

Let's begin with clarity about the analogy I wish to draw between his
approach to mustangs and my approach to dreams. (See chart)

Cast
of characters

The
Mustang

The Dream

The
Trainer

The Helper
(helpers)

The Rider

The
Dreamer Awake

Goals

To
transform an animal living in the wild and reared in a herd into a friendly
and cooperative creature which, when gently handled, willingly and helpfully
learns how to live in and enrich a man-made world.

Dreams are
also creatures of the wild that come into being outside of the constraints of
waking consciousness. When gently transformed into the coin of waking life,
their intrusive spontaneity, honesty, and vitality come alive and enrich the
life of the dreamer.

Basic
Assumptions

The same basic assumptions apply to the
transformation of both the mustang and the dreamer.

1. The potential exists for the transformation to
occur. The horse can become man's friend and the "unread letter" of
the dream can be read.

2. The transformation can best occur in an
atmosphere of safety and with a capacity of each of the parties to understand
the language of the other.

3. Neither one has the upper hand or seeks it. It is
an encounter between equals that brings out the best in the teacher working
with the mustang and the teacher working with the dream.

4. Both transformations are processes that unfold in
time.

In both situations, with horses and dreamers, progress is uneven.
Setbacks occur when vulnerable areas are exposed and mismanaged. In the horse,
the flank is the area where the horse is most open to attack by predators. In
the case of the dreamer it's the ability of the dream to, on occasion, expose
the dark side of one's personality.

Tact, empathy, perseverance and reassuring support are the necessary
ingredients in dealing with these areas. When these are present in full
measure, it is amazing to witness the risk‑taking resources that surface
and make exploration of and accommodation to these areas possible.

In the case of the mustang it may mean something as simple as getting
the horse used to something soft and protective on the flank before working
with the saddle and its attachments. In the case of the dream, many factors are
at work that make for risk taking and movement into those dark areas.

In the group work I do with dreams, all of us share dreams and gain in
courage as we see others dive deeply into the murkiest places. We further share
parts of our psyche with each other when we make the dream our own and this has
a similar effect. Most important of all is the trust the dreamer develops in
the process and in the group, based on the fact the dreamer remains in control
of the process. The respect the group has for the dreamer to decide how deeply
to dive actually has the effect of making deep dives possible.

Learning a new language

Roberts set about quite early in his life to learn Equus, the language
of the mustang. Helpers to the dreamer have to learn the language of the
dreamer as adults. Let us look at the two languages. Both are quite different
from the discursive speech we are used to.

Equus

Wild horses use the language of bodily actions to express their reaction
to the danger or their needs within the herd. Having learned that language
through his observations of mustangs roaming freely, Roberts uses his knowledge
to imitate communications and to establish a relationship. The first and most
important feature is what he refers to as Advance and Retreat. The horse is a
flight animal seeking to distance itself from danger. It retreats. Only when
the source of danger either retreats or shows no interest in attacking does the
horse show some interest, even to the point of moving closer to what at first
was considered dangerous.

Roberts mimics this scenario in order to achieve what he refers to as
"join‑up." With the horse in a pen large enough to stay away
from him, he assumes an aggressive stance at first. Maintaining eye contact, he
moves toward the horse who then takes flight and starts circling the pen. He
keeps doing this in the hope the horse will tire and be ready to renegotiate
the situation. Ear movements, lowering of the head, licking and chewing
movements indicate readiness to terminate the flight mode. The horse is quite
eloquently conveying the message:

"I am a flight animal so if I
look like I'm eating it's obvious I have gotten over my fear of you. I
don't like the feeling of being alone and isolated. It isn't natural. Since
there aren't any other horses around I might as well consider the possibility
of closeness to you. Part of me is still afraid of what I may be in for if I
risk going further into your world. It's so different from the world I have
known."

Roberts then assumes the submissive role and, by casting his eyes down
and changing his stance a bit, conveys a message of safety and an invitation to
the horse to come closer. These tactics are repeated until the horse feels
secure enough to come up to him and then calmly follow him as he moves about
the pen. Roberts refers to this as join‑up. Once this occurs, the stage
is set for slowly and gently familiarizing the horse with the equipment needed
to saddle up and accept a rider.

Roberts by his body language conveys:

"I understand the difficulties
you face in befriending me and will do my best to take your feelings into
account every step of the way. We both have much to learn and much to gain in
becoming friends."

Now let's turn to the dialogue between the dream and the helper
(helpers) to the dream.

The Dream

"I speak a
different language than you. You will have to have a good grasp of this
language if you are going to help the dreamer benefit from my existence. I have
a certain advantage because although you are not that familiar with my
language, I know your language, having been around the dreamer ever since he or
she came into this world.

"The language I
use differs from yours with regard to its form. I mostly use a pictorial form
in which the images that appear are metaphorical expressions of feelings that
are surfacing at the time. The visual metaphor of the dream is no different in
essence from the poet's use of metaphor. They both have a way of reaching their
mark with greater impact than ordinary speech. The visual metaphor of the dream
captures emotional currents that have not yet risen to the surface. Not only do
I have a better grasp of what's going on than the dreamer himself or herself,
but I can express what I feel with greater depth and honesty through my natural
gift for metaphor.

"Your friend Mr.
Roberts says horses don't lie. Neither do I; I call a spade a spade. That means
at times exposing sensitive and painful areas. The truths embedded in the
imagery and the originality of the way they are expressed most often elude the
dreamer awake. That's where you come in. Your task is a very delicate one. You
have to address any vulnerable areas exposed in a way that prepares the dreamer
(the rider) to own (ride) the dream and feel safe in doing so. If you don't
succeed you force me back into the unconscious domain (take flight into the
wild) and then the gift of self-awareness I have goes unappreciated.

"This is a real
challenge to you, the helper. After all, I hold secrets that the dreamer
doesn't wear on his or her sleeve when out in public. Remember that as in the
case of Mr. Roberts who prepares the horse to accept the rider, you have to
prepare the dreamer to accept the dream. Only the dreamer knows when there is a
true fit between dream and waking reality (sitting comfortably and safely in
the saddle). That takes time and tact."

The helper (or helpers) in turn addresses the dream:

"I (we) am very much aware of
the challenge you speak of. I (we) will do my (our) best to ease the movement
of the dreamer into those vulnerable areas you speak of so that your full
message is heard. If I (we) succeed in this there will be a painless transition
from your natural environment of origin (the unconscious) to a manmade
environment (the world as experienced, awake).

The helper (helpers) address the dreamer:

"I (we) am aware of the task
before you in engaging with your own dream. There are vulnerable areas to deal
with and new resources to uncover. My (our) task is to help you move as close
to the dream as possible. I (we) will follow rather than lead you and at all
times be respectful of your own protective instincts. I (we) can only be of
help to you to the extent I (we) earn your trust and make it possible for you,
of your own free will, to discover and share with me (us) the meaning you will
discover in your dream."

The mustang and the rider disappear together into the sunset. The
dreamer and the dream face the new day with greater self-awareness.